king of bottles, it will not be amiss to note here,
for my future warning, a grave imprudence of mine, which I discovered on
leaving the room to seek more wine. On the flame of my candle blowing
aside, I perceived that I had left my door unfastened, so that it now
stood ajar. And, truly, this was as culpable a piece of oversight as I
could well have committed; for here, had an enemy, or even an idle
busybody, been passing, he might very well have entered the little
passage and overheard that which had been our undoing to have made
known.

CHAPTER XXVI.

_How Moll Dawson was married to Mr. Richard Godwin; brief account of
attendant circumstances._

_December 14._ Dawson left us this morning. In parting, Mr. Godwin
graciously begged him to come to his wedding feast on Christmas
day,--they having fixed upon Christmas eve to be married,--and Dawson
promised he would; but he did assure me afterwards, as we were walking
along the road to meet the stage waggon, that he would certainly feign
some reason for not coming. "For," says he, "I am not so foolhardy as to
jeopardise my Moll's happiness for the pleasure this feast would give
me. Nay, Kit, I do think 'twould break my heart indeed, if anything of
my doing should mar my Moll's happiness." And I was very well pleased to
find him in this humour, promising him that we would make amends for his
abstinence on this occasion by cracking many a bottle to Moll's joy when
we could come together again secretly at my house. In the afternoon Mr.
Pearson's clerk brought the deed of agreement for the settlement of the
estate upon Moll and Mr. Godwin, which they signed, and so that is
finished as we would have it. This clerk tells me his master hath
already gone to London about getting the seal. So all things look mighty
prosperous.

_December 17._ Fearing to displease Sir Peter Lely by longer delay, Mr.
Godwin set out for Hatfield Tuesday, we--that is, Moll, Don Sanchez, and
I--going with him as far as the borough, where Moll had a thousand
things to buy against her wedding. And here we found great activity of
commerce, and many shops filled with excellent good goods,--more than
ever there were before the great fire drove out so many tradesmen from
the city. Here Moll spends her money royally, buying whatever catches
her eye that is rich and beautiful, not only for her own personal
adornment, but for the embellishment of her house (as hangings, damasks,
toys, etc.), yet alw